[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 249 (Wednesday, December 29, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73079-73080]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-33680]
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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[Docket Nos. 50-254 and 50-265]
Commonwealth Edison Company and MidAmerican Energy Company, Quad
Cities Nuclear Power Station, Units 1 and 2; Notice of Consideration of
Approval of Application Regarding Proposed Change in Shareholders of
MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company Opportunity for a Hearing
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) is
considering the issuance of an order under 10 CFR 50.80 approving the
indirect transfer of Facility Operating Licenses Nos. DPR-29 and DPR-
30, for the Quad Cities Nuclear Power Station, Units 1 and 2 (Quad
Cities), respectively, to the extent currently held by MidAmerican
Energy Company (MidAmerican), as a co-owner of Quad Cities.
According to the application for approval by MidAmerican, all of
the stock of MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company (MEHC), the parent
company of MidAmerican, is to be acquired by a small group of
investors. This group of investors consists of Berkshire Hathaway, Inc.
and/or subsidiaries thereof; David L. Sokol, the Chairman and Chief
Executive Officer of MEHC; and Walter Scott, MEHC's largest individual
shareholder, and/or certain Scott family interests; and potentially
other members of MEHC's management. Following the acquisition,
Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd) and MidAmerican would remain as the
licensees for Quad Cities. ComEd would continue to own 75% of the
facility, be exclusively responsible for the operation and maintenance
of Quad Cities, and be an agent for MidAmerican. MidAmerican would
continue to hold a 25% ownership interest in Quad Cities. The
application proposes no changes to the financial arrangements and
obligations of ComEd and MidAmerican with respect to Quad Cities,
including decommissioning funding responsibilities. In addition, no
physical changes to the Quad Cities facility or operational changes are
being proposed in the application. No direct transfer of the licenses
would result from the proposed acquisition of MEHC stock. The
application seeks consent by the Commission to the extent the proposed
acquisition would effect an indirect transfer of the Quad Cities
licenses, as held by MidAmerican, under 10 CFR 50.80.
Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.80, no license, or any right thereunder,
shall be transferred, directly or indirectly, through transfer of
control of the license, unless the Commission shall give consent in
writing. The Commission will approve an application for the indirect
transfer of a license, if the Commission determines that the underlying
transaction effecting the indirect transfer will not affect the
qualifications of the holder of the license, and that the transfer is
otherwise consistent with applicable provisions of law, regulations,
and orders issued by the Commission pursuant thereto.
The filing of requests for hearing and petitions for leave to
intervene, and written comments with regard to the license transfer
application, are discussed below.
By January 18, 2000, any person whose interest may be affected by
the Commission's action on the application may request a hearing, and,
if not the applicants, may petition for leave to intervene in a hearing
proceeding on the Commission's action. Requests for a hearing and
petitions for leave to intervene should be filed in accordance with the
Commission's rules of practice set forth in Subpart M, ``Public
Notification, Availability of Documents and Records, Hearing Requests
and Procedures for Hearings on License
[[Page 73080]]
Transfer Applications,'' of 10 CFR Part 2. In particular, such requests
and petitions must comply with the requirements set forth in 10 CFR
2.1306, and should address the considerations contained in 10 CFR
2.1308(a). Untimely requests and petitions may be denied, as provided
in 10 CFR 2.1308(b), unless good cause for failure to file on time is
established. In addition, an untimely request or petition should
address the factors that the Commission will also consider, in
reviewing untimely requests or petitions, set forth in 10 CFR
2.1308(b)(1)-(2).
Requests for a hearing and petitions for leave to intervene should
be served upon Roy P. Lessy, Jr., Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld,
L.L.P., 1333 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC,
20036, telephone (202) 887-4500, fax (202) 995-7763, e-mail
Rlessy@akingump.com; John A. Rasmussen, Jr., Senior Vice President and
General Counsel, MidAmerican Energy Company, 666 Grand Avenue, P.O. Box
657, Des Moines, Iowa 50303, telephone (515) 242-4085, fax (515) 242-
4261, e-mail jarasmussen@midamerican.com; Ms. Pamela B. Stroebel,
Senior Vice President and General Counsel, Commonwealth Edison Company,
P.O. Box 767, Chicago, Illinois 60690-0767; the General Counsel, U.S.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555 (e-mail address for
license transfer cases only: [email protected]); and the Secretary of the
Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, Attention: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, in accordance
with 10 CFR 2.1313.
The Commission will issue a notice or order granting or denying a
hearing request or intervention petition, designating the issues for
any hearing that will be held and designating the Presiding Officer. A
notice granting a hearing will be published in the Federal Register and
served on the parties to the hearing.
As an alternative to requests for hearing and petitions to
intervene, by January 28, 2000, persons may submit written comments
regarding the license transfer application, as provided for in 10 CFR
2.1305. The Commission will consider and, if appropriate, respond to
these comments, but such comments will not otherwise constitute part of
the decisional record. Comments should be submitted to the Secretary,
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001,
Attention: Rulemakings and Adjudications Staff, and should cite the
publication date and page number of this Federal Register notice.
For further details with respect to this action, see the
application and related cover letters dated November 15, 1999, and
previous related letters dated November 2, 1999, which are available
for public inspection at the Commission's Public Document Room, the
Gelman Building, 2120 L Street, NW, Washington, DC, and accessible
electronically through the ADAMS Public Electronic Reading Room link
at the NRC Web site (http://www.nrc.gov).
Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 21st day of December 1999.
For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
S. Singh Bajwa,
Director, Project Directorate III, Division of Licensing Project
Management, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.
[FR Doc. 99-33680 Filed 12-28-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P
